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MID90S

Actor Jonah Hill’s ambitious directorial debut is a spiky tale of youthful rebellion. A group of skate punks take an awkward 13-year-old Stevie under their tattered wings. An authentic time capsule of the sights and sounds of a moment in pop culture history.

Stevie is 13, but looks a lot younger. As always, it is summertime in L.A. and Stevie is desperate to hang out with the big boys. At home his older brother tyrannises him; his single mother is rarely there. When Stevie meets a group of cool dudes at the local skateboard shop, everything changes: the Ninja Turtles poster is replaced by a pin-up girl, he begins practicing skateboarding at night in front of the house and it is not long before Stevie smokes his first cigarette.

This story of a teenager’s difficult search for recognition and the right friends unfolds with great ease and plenty of music. Replete with mixtapes, VHS camcorders, Nintendo PlayStations and a good dose of nostalgia, Hill’s 16mm film takes us into the world of a boy who is testing his limits and is in danger of growing up too quickly.

And on the soundtrack, in addition to film music supplied by Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails) and Atticus Ross, we are treated to the songs of Nirvana, The Mamas & the Papas, Cypress Hill, Souls of Mischief and Seal.